Dr. Montessori was not a fan of simply teaching abstract concepts to children for the sake of teaching. Rather she sought to inspire each child to find their own intelligence through planting seeds of information and exposing them to many different subjects and ideas. By making a wide variety of disciplines available to children and by presenting them in a concrete manner, the students were able to blossom and excel in information which may have otherwise remained elusive to them.
By sowing a wide variety of seeds in the Montessori home or classroom children are able to find and nurture the things that interest them the most. These will inturn spark additional subjects and disciplines as they progress through their education. Just like college students do not all study the exact same specialties, children should be allowed to expand and sharpen their knowledge in the things which they love.
Presenting a wide variety of books both fiction and nonfiction at an early age can help a child discover their interests as well as assist the parent in further “seed sowing” decisions.
Here is a list of items that can be helpful to have available to your child on low shelves. You can rotate these items. Setting out several options each week so that the choices are not too overwhelming.
Math manipulatives
Craft supplies
Letter bins (These are little containers with a letter on the outside and items inside that start with the letter sound.)
